Lu Meng
Lu Meng (onyomi: Ryo Mō) is a general who first served Sun Ce as a warrior subjugating bandits and soldiers. Sun Quan noticed that he was uneducated and advised him to study. After three days of vigorous studying, he was renowned to be a prudent and wise individual who made peace between Gan Ning and Ling Tong. Chen Shou wrote that he was a capable general of remarkable intelligence, as his wit and strength were used to foil Zhang Liao and Guan Yu's armies. His life was claimed by illness, but Romance of the Three Kingdoms instead states he was killed by Guan Yu's vengeful ghost. Dynasty Warriors Lu Meng is thirty-third place in Gamecity's Dynasty Warriors 7 character popularity poll and forty-fifth in the Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends poll. In Famitsu's character survey, he placed seventh in the boss category. The latest poll for the eighth installment puts him in forty-fifth. The character poll for overseas fans puts him in eleventh place for the Wu division. His character's height in Kessen II is 175 cm (5'9"). Role in Games :"This much should be easy for you!" ::~~Sakon; Warriors Orochi Dynasty Warriors After Zhou Yu's death, Lu Meng becomes the main strategist for Wu. He acts as army's commander for He Fei and Fan Castle. In the latter battle, he leads the Wu reinforcements and claims Guan Yu's life. He often suffers a mortal wound during the conflict and is succeeded by Lu Xun. Unless players are playing his own story, he will usually not appear after Fan Castle. His Legend Mode in Dynasty Warriors 4: Xtreme Legends details his final campaign against Guan Yu. Aiming to destroy the weakened Shu general, he corners his target at Mai Castle. He orders the Wei and Wu soldiers to surround Guan Yu as soon as possible and personally leads the assault. Lu Meng challenges each enemy officer until he defeats their commander. Guan Yu commends his opponent and calmly requests his worthy foe to deal the finishing blow. Although Lu Meng expresses his doubts, he complies with a quick farewell. Lu Meng starts as a through and through warrior in Dynasty Warriors 5. Trained since childhood to only fight, he is recruited by Sun Ce to be one of his elite guards during the Conquest of Wu. He serves the Wu kingdom after his master's death and is ordered by Sun Quan to be more scholarly. His predecessor also encourages for him to learn patience and strategy at Chi Bi. Lu Meng persists in his studies and gradually becomes a capable officer with equal academic and military strengths. As Wu's Commander, he leads the advance in Jing Province and ends Guan Yu's life with his strategies at Fan Castle. Though the land is still at war in his ending, Lu Meng continues to guide his home's army in several glorious battles. He shares his Legend Mode in the Xtreme Legends expansion with four other Wu generals in the Battle of Ru Xu Kou. Entrusted with leading the troops, Lu Meng coordinates the events of the battle. He heads eastward with Taishi Ci and may impress Zhang Liao if the strategist defeats him. Lu Meng's ending scene in Dynasty Warriors: Online shows the player stunned at the amount of scrolls stacked on the former's desk. With the war finally over, there is no reason for warriors to continue fighting. Instead, Lu Meng suggests that they study together and apply what they've learned to help their kingdom grow. During Dynasty Warriors 6, Lu Meng appears as an experienced adviser during the stories for Wu's characters. He fights at Chi Bi and reinforces Wei at Fan Castle. Special also has him lead the army at Ru Xu Kou and act as the mediator between Ling Tong and Gan Ning. He dies in most scenarios after the army claims victory at Fan Castle. Lu Xun's scenario reveals that he suffers from a mortal arrow wound. In Gan Ning's story, he speaks for the younger man's favor and tries to reinforce the importance of unity to the youth. His death finally makes Gan Ning realize the responsibility he shoulders, which encourages the former pirate to cooperate with his allies. In Ling Tong's scenario, Gan Ning emphasizes with his friend's feeling of loss since he felt the same pain with Lu Meng's passing. Lu Meng lives to see the land united and congratulates the two friends during Taishi Ci's ending. Lu Meng follows his usual role of taking the position as Wu's strategist after Zhou Yu's death in the seventh title, starting his services at Hefei. Sun Quan then sends him, Lu Xun and Gan Ning to Fan Castle to defeat Guan Yu. By this time, Lu Meng is suffering from an illness, but he fights on and eventually challenges Guan Yu, proclaiming that he has nothing to lose. After killing Guan Yu, Lu Meng succumbs to his illness. He entrusts Lu Xun with the task of aiding Sun Quan as the new strategist before he passes away. In Wu's ending, Lu Meng appears in Sun Quan's dream, congratulating him on his achievements as a ruler. In Shu's story, Lu Meng will lure the Shu troops in an ambush and will be killed trying to impede them. In his dying wish, he delegates command to Lu Xun. In his first Legendary Battle, Lu Meng fights several strategists, including Zhou Yu, to learn the art of strategy. In his second Legendary Battle, which takes place sometime after Zhou Yu's death, Lu Meng fights the Wu army to prove his worth as a strategist. Lu Meng becomes playable in the sixth chapter of Dynasty Warriors Next. At Xiakou, he and his allies rush to Sun Quan's aid when the latter is ambushed by Huang Zu's troops. He also serves as an antagonist for Wei during the Battle of Hefei. When most of his men fall prey to Zhang Liao, Lu Meng attempts to ensure his lord's escape by entrapping the general in one of their bases. His defeat at Jianye may cause Gan Ning to recklessly attack the Wei forces in retaliation. In Wu's final scenario, he convinces Sun Quan to form an alliance with to eliminate Guan Yu. As the player's avatar at Fan Castle, he personally slays the God of War without succumbing to illness. Jin's final battle against Wu has him and Lu Xun lure Sima Yi from his main camp. In Dynasty Warriors 8, Lu Meng reprises his role from the previous game, though he may survive past the Battle of Fan Castle should he sustain less injuries. In Wu's hypothetical route, he joins forces with Lu Su and Lu Xun to fight Sima Yi and the Wei forces at Runan. Shu's alternate route has him accept defeat from the victorious Shu officers at Lukou and helps renew the Shu-Wu alliance against Wei. If all the plans at Lukou are thwarted, he and Lu Xun will arrive as reinforcements at Chang'an. Wei's story mode has him launch an assault to Cao Cao's main camp, while his officers are trapped at Jianye. If Sun Quan is killed, Lu Meng will also appear at Xuchang in an effort to capitalize on the inner turmoil. In the expansion, Lu Meng is playable for two of his kingdom's Xtreme Legend stages. The first one has him appear at the new scenario for Yiling in which he and Zhou Tai draw the attention of the Shu army, while Zhu Ran goes behind the enemy to initiate the fire attack. The second one is the Chief Commander face-off with Lu Meng facing off against Zhou Yu, Lu Su, and Lu Xun to see who is greater. If Lu Xun faces him, his personal strategy will be to unleash ballistae. In Wei's scenario, he assists Guan Yu during his attack on Fan Castle, but thanks to the severing of communications, the Wei forces are able to flood the castle containing the Wu forces, and pin the blame on Shu, leading to Lu Meng's retreat. He then appears with Lu Xun, at Maicheng, and attack Wei's main camp. In Jin's story mode, Lu Meng outlives his historical death, and assists Zhuge Liang in his attack on Shangyong. In Shu's scenario, he appears among those attempting to stop Liu Bei's escape from Jianye. Dynasty Warriors: Unleashed has Lu Meng appear in Fan Castle where he directly challenges the player and Guan Yu. He will constantly remain under the effects of an invincibility buff if any of his sentry captains get past the player's grasp. His bond story begins with him making a good first impression on Sun Quan by strengthening the Sun family's soldiers with an efficient training regimen. He also gains Lu Su's approval with a clever plan to reclaim Jing Province. The gambit entails using Lu Xun as the face of their army to catch Guan Yu off-guard. Though Lu Meng's plan results in the Shu officer losing his life, the former comes down with a serious illness that keeps him bedridden. His condition concerns Sun Quan so much that a hole is made right next to the latter's office so he can watch over the ailing general recover. Some of Lu Meng's story events highlight the troubles that come with reining in Gan Ning. Initially angry at the former pirate for angrily killing a cook under his protection, the two of them reconcile when Lu Meng hears how kindly his mother was treated by Gan Ning. He also helps minimize tensions between the pirate and Ling Tong during a party hosted by Sun Quan. Warriors Orochi In the first game, Lu Meng is among the many officers of Wu captured by Orochi, and is the third to be released just before Sun Ce's failed attempt to rescue Sun Jian. Lu Meng plays a larger role in Wu's Gaiden stages, leading the effort to rescue Nō from where she was imprisoned, bringing a group of forces to confront Keiji, and leading the expedition against Tadakatsu, who had been tricked into believing that they were members of the Orochi Army. During Warriors Orochi 2, he is surrounded by Lu Bu's army and on the verge of defeat. Wanting to gain Wu as an ally, Sima Yi aids his plight. The two armies work together and drive the opposition back. As gratitude, Lu Meng and his army join Sakon's army. In one of the game's dream modes, he teams with Guan Yu and Xiahou Dun to save Liu Chan from Hideyoshi's army. While these men ordinarily are not on good terms, they look past their differences and collaborate with one another. He suggests stopping Motochika's bombardment and taking the enemy storehouse to energize Liu Chan. Keeping his loyalties to Wu in the third title's original timeline, Lu Meng patrolled the dimensional realm with Taishi Ci. During their travels together, Lu Meng was separated from Taishi Ci after he suffered a serious injury against the serpent forces at Mt. Niutou. In spite of his wounds, he pushed onward to Hasedō and tried to infiltrate the serpent army's main camp. The ploy fails and the general sacrifices himself for his men's escape. His injury inhibits him from fighting at his true potential, causing him to lose his life against a threat he could normally defeat. Lu Meng continues to die in battle when the coalition first returns to the past at Hasedō. To save Lu Meng, Taishi Ci leads a party to subjugate the serpent forces at Mt. Niutou in the past. As he and his party return to his aid in the changed timeline, Lu Meng thanks them and offers his service to the coalition's cause. He later departs momentarily to retrieve Gan Ning at Mikatagahara. In the Hyper expansion, Lu Meng joins Fu Xi investigating the confusion at Yangping Gate, which leads to recruiting Shennong to the Coalition. Remaining a loyal retainer at 4, Lu Meng was sent alongside Huang Gai and Han Dang to assist Zhuge Dan and Ieyasu's defense of Honnōji against Athena's forces. After defeating both the goddess and Hideyoshi, Lu Meng and his allies join the Coalition. Lu Meng later accompanies his allies to save Kaguya at Tedorigawa, surprised to find both Gan Ning and Ling Tong also in the area for the same task. Lu Meng also helps Zhang Liao launch a surprise attack on Lu Bu's army. Hearing of a mysterious person being attacked at Jing Province, Lu Meng accompanies Sakon Shima, Yuan Shao, Katsuie Shibata, Zhenji, and Diaochan in investigating the cause. As it turns out, it is Koshōshō who was fighting against Jia Chong's army. With the help of the three maidens distracting the enemies with their charm, Lu Meng's army is able to claim victory. While wandering Sekigahara with Nene and Zhang Chunhua, they spot a standoff between Mitsunari and Ieyasu's forces, with some of their forces already fighting each other and other factions such as Cao Pi, Liu Bei, and some Wu officers being dragged into the mix as well. The source reveals itself as Kiyomori, who was using a magical mist to possess the nearby armies. Uniting both sides together, they are able to defeat the sorcerer. Kessen In Shu's story in Kessen II, Lu Meng persistently pursues Guan Yu at the Battle of Wu Chang. He is very difficult to distract as he will continuously target the Shu general until either one's defeat. During the epilogue battle for both stories, he is one of the Wu generals who reinforces the opposing side. He has a high War stat with average Magic capabilities. Character Information Personality Honest and perceptive, Lu Meng is a man who believes in steadfastness. While he speaks with a gruff tone, he is a calm and flexible leader with universal capabilities. Praised for his determination and cunning, he tries to impart his wisdom to several of Wu's younger retainers, as he finds them to be the hope for their kingdom should he fall. He particularly sees talent in Lu Xun and respects the younger man's intellect. He is sensitive about his age and isn't too flattered with Gan Ning's nickname for him though he has claimed he's younger than he looks and the latter is actually older than him historically. During the Warriors Orochi series, he shares special conversations with Nō, Ranmaru, Sakon, Hideyoshi, Kanetsugu, Kiyomasa, and Masanori. Character Symbolism In the Japanese version of Dynasty Warriors 4: Empires, Lu Meng is given the nickname of "Stormy Warrior" while the English version changes it to "The Scholar of Cunning Moves". As a dominant ruler in Dynasty Warriors 5: Empires, he calls his five greatest warriors the "Five Patriots". The original names for Lu Meng's third and fourth weapons -and his fifth/Level 11 weapon- are references to one of the Four Divine Beast of Constellations famous in Eastern Asia, the White Tiger. In this case, the name doubles as a nod to Wu and being the polar opposite of the Azure Dragon (via the Tiger vs. Dragon motif). Within the Dynasty Warriors series, the Azure Dragon often represents Guan Yu. This motif is also shared with Xu Huang's weapons, as a nod to their respective roles at Fan Castle; Xu Huang acts as its fang, while Lu Meng is the supporting jaw. Lu Meng's motif for it is often more expressed in the English ports, most likely due to his home kingdom having the same tiger motif. Later weapons still retain the aforementioned jaw motif, though with various other beasts instead. Lu Meng's weapons for his Dynasty Warriors 6 appearance had a wordplay when they were collected. His Standard weapon roughly means "Indomitable Spirit". Its literal definition means "unwavering", defined as whatever challenges a person faces, their will -their human heart- will always prevail. His Skill weapon can be translated as "Unbending Will" or more literally, "No Surrender". The definition can mean to never give into pressure. When these two names are combined, they create the four hanzi/kanji proverb Futō Fukutsu (不撓不屈): whatever challenges a person meets, they will never falter. In Japan, this phrase was originally coined with tax evasion. But as the controversy extended and times changed, the trends encouraged aristocrats to abandon their high-class life styles to become men of war. The name for his Strength weapon implies to abandon one's care for one's enemy or to not care for impulsive acts (不敵, futeki). It is usually translated as being callous or rambunctious. His original personal item in Warriors Orochi is Zhan Guo Ce, an indispensable document that details the strategies, politics, and conditions of China's Warring States Period. It is a compilation spread throughout the time period and describes plans created since Shi Huangdi's time of power. Historically in Lu Meng's career, it was one of the listed books suggested by Sun Quan for both him and Jiang Qin to study. Voice Actors *Richard Grosse - Dynasty Warriors 2 (English) *R. Martin Klein - Dynasty Warriors 4 (English-uncredited) *Tony Oliver - Dynasty Warriors 6 Special~8, Warriors Orochi 2 (English-uncredited) *Dietrich Grey - Dynasty Warriors 9 (English) *Kai Taschner - Dynasty Warriors 3 (German-uncredited) *Qiao Yulong - Dynasty Warriors 3 (Chinese) *Haoran Guo - Dynasty Warriors 9 (Chinese) *No Min - Dynasty Warriors 2 (Korean) *Kim Seung Tae - Dynasty Warriors 3 (Korean) *Lee Cheol Yong - Dynasty Warriors 4~5 (Korean) *Bang Seong Joon - Dynasty Warriors: Unleashed (Korean) *Si Yeongjun - Romance of the Three Kingdoms: The Legend of Cao Cao (Korean) *Yukitoshi Hori - Dynasty Warriors and Warriors Orochi series (Japanese) *Kazunari Tanaka - Kessen II (Japanese) *Tomoyuki Terai - Romance of the Three Kingdoms: The Legend of Cao Cao (Japanese) *Gō Shinomiya - Sangokushi Legion Quotes :See also: Lu Meng/Quotes *"Guan Yu... With all of my strength and wisdom, as well as the might of Wu to finally defeat you. You truly were the God of War, truly a real hero." *"I've warned you about that, you insolent pirate!" *"I might have known you'd see. You're right... I am suffering from an illness. Now that you know that... You'll know I have absolutely nothing to lose!" *"Impressive! You have become a formidable warrior, Lu Meng. Take my head. I shall speak tales of you in the afterlife." :"So, you will not yield? Very well... Farewell, God of War!" ::~~''Guan Yu and Lu Meng; Dynasty Warriors 4: Xtreme Legends'' *"Cao Cao's ships are right in front of us! Let me lead the attack on him!" :"Wait, Lu Meng! Would you throw away our chance at victory? Stay here! Watch and learn! An officer of Wu must learn to think and rely on more than just his strength." ::~~''Lu Meng and Zhou Yu; Dynasty Warriors 5'' *"Hey old man, forgive me. For an old man, you're pretty young!" :"I'm glad you finally figured that out." :"So what should I call you from now on? Brother?" :"Stick to old man." ::~~Gan Ning and Lu Meng; Dynasty Warriors 5 Empires *"I heard stories about your youth. They say you didn't settle down and study until later in life." :"Yes, I was quite rowdy when I was younger. I was never as serious as you." :"Ah, I see! With effort, even the biggest ruffian can improve his ways!" :"And I can see that you need to learn something else - how to lighten up." ::~~Lu Xun and Lu Meng; Dynasty Warriors 7 *"When I was young and wild, I was unable to turn down a friend's request and made a terrible mistake. I still remember it." :"Everyone has made such a mistake. My own passions have driven me to make an error that I wish I could take back." :"Even you? I'm surprised to hear that. I didn't think that such a thing was possible. How did you atone for that mistake?" :"To start with, I had no plans to do so. I thought I could escape and forget everything if I just kept running. However, on contrary, my feelings of guilt just grew in magnitude. Unable to stand it, I confessed it all." :"So you atoned by accepting punishment. I can't keep on running, either, can I. It's time to face my past." ::~~Xu Shu and Lu Meng; Dynasty Warriors: Godseekers *"That was an impressive move you pulled back there. I can see you're far from muscle alone." :"I like to think of myself as an all-rounder." :"Sharp up top with the grunt to match. You remind me of a certain warrior of Wu." :"And I'm looking right at him." ::~~''Lu Meng and Sakon; Warriors Orochi'' *"Lookin' good, old man! You've still got a lot of life left in you yet!" :"Stop calling me old man. I may not look it, but I'm still quite young." :"A young old man! That's even better! I hope to be just like you when I get old!" ::~~Masanori and Lu Meng; Warriors Orochi 3 *"Ah! Master Lu Meng, the intellectual and brave officer of the Wu! I'm so happy to be able to meet you." :"That might be going a little far. I'm not complaining, but I've not achieved quite as much as you seem to think." :"Oh but you have! You've got the potential to define the very era, why-- ah, hold on. I can't tell you that." :"Hey. No need to stop the praise now." :"No, there is, I'm afraid. If you were to be told something that, from your perspective, is in the future, you might act differently and change that which I see as the past. Changing the history of China will change the history of Japan. What effect might that have on the Mōri? I might not even be born!" :"I see. Like the breaking of a dam changing the terrain downriver, if I was to learn the future then the flow of history might be changed." :"Yes, that's the issue. So I'm not going to tell you anything else. There's so much I would like to discuss with you, but no! I can't!" :"In which case, let's talk about something else. The Art of War, perhaps, and ancient tactical texts? Talking about such things won't change anything, I presume?" :"I see, I see. Very clever! I would like that very much, Master Lu Meng." ::~~Motonari and Lu Meng; Warriors Orochi 4 Gameplay :See also: Lu Meng/Movesets‎‎ Dynasty Warriors 9 Lu Meng is affiliated with the pike in this appearance. :Unique Flow Attack: :Unique Trigger Attack (R1 + ): :Special Technique (R1 + ): :Musou ( ): :Aerial Musou ( + ): Weapons :See also: Lu Meng/Weapons Dynasty Warriors 8 Lu Meng still uses the pike as his default weapon in this title. Historical Information Early Years Lu Meng originated from Fupo in Runan. His sons were Lu Ba, Lu Zong, and Lu Mu. Around his teenage years, Lu Meng stayed with his sister's husband, Deng Dang, who was also an officer under Sun Ce. When Deng Dang was ordered to battle the Shanyue barbarians, Lu Meng secretly followed him, and after finding out, Deng Dang failed to convince Lu Meng to go home. After the operations were complete, Lu Meng's mother found out and wished to punish Lu Meng. She relented after her son said, "One cannot stay poor forever. But if by chance I gain merit and honor in something, fortune and prestige would come. As they say, 'if you don't go deep into the tiger's den, how can you hope to catch a tiger cub?'" An officer under Deng Dang insulted Lu Meng because he was so young, and insinuated that he would be dead weight on the army because of his youth. The same officer insulted Lu Meng again another day, and Lu Meng killed him, then seeking shelter under a village elder. He would turn himself in later, and the colonel who received him brought the tale of what had happened to Sun Ce. Sun Ce met with Lu Meng and made him his personal officer after becoming impressed with the young lad. When Deng Dang passed away years later, Zhang Zhao recommended Lu Meng to succeed Deng Dang's rank, and thus he was appointed as Major of a Separate Command. Sun Ce died and Sun Quan inherited control of the administration. Lu Meng had his command increased and was promoted to Colonel who Pacifies the North and Chief of Guangde commune after impressing Sun Quan with his troops and accomplishing much in a campaign for Danyang. When Sun Quan sailed to conquer Huang Zu, Huang Zu had Chen Jiu, his chief commander, to repel the attackers. Leading the vanguard, Lu Meng killed Chen Jiu and forced Huang Zu to flee his positions. Sun Quan commended that the conquest's success was due to the quick defeats of Chen Jiu. Lu Meng was promoted to General of the Interior Who Crosses the Fields. After Cao Cao and his fleet was defeated at Chibi, Lu Meng routed them during their escape at Wulin, and after accompanied Zhou Yu in besieging Nanjun and Jiangling. Gan Ning requested reinforcements to come after he engaged Cao Ren at Yiling, and the commanders pleaded that they did not have enough troops to rescue him. Lu Meng suggested to Cheng Pu and Zhou Yu to allow himself to go with them and reinforce Gan Ning, and also to seal off the enemy's escape routes with wood so the enemy horses could be taken. The advice was taken, and after arriving at Yiling, Cao Ren's forces were massacred. They fled during the night, but the escape routes were blocked by the wood set up before by Zhou Yu, and so, the troops dismounted and retreated on foot. The remaining horses were captured, and most parts of Cao-controlled Jing province were pacified. Lu Meng was made the Chief of Xunyang commune and Lieutenant-General. As General Lu Meng later would defeat Xie Qi, an officer under Cao Cao sent to manage farming colonies at Wan and would interfere with the Wu border. Sun Quan wanted to build forts on the northern side of the Yangtze in case they would need to attack enemy forces there. Many generals opposed it, saying there would be no need for forts if they're attacking, but Lu Meng supported the idea, countering that the events of battle are manifold and should they need to retreat, there would be no time to board ships or get into the water. The forts were built, and during the defense of Ruxu around 213 AD, Lu Meng proposed many good plans, also suggesting that forts should be build all around for a well-prepared defense. The enemy would soon retreat, not being able to pierce through the defenses. When Cao Cao had Zhu Guang set up a fort and expand the farming colonies at Wan, Lu Meng proposed that an attack should be made to halt the expansions to prevent more enemy troops from being stationed there from good harvests. Sun Quan accepted the advice and led a march on Wan. Lu Meng had Gan Ning lead the charge for the city while Lu Meng backed him up and personally beat the drums to increase allied morale. The city was quickly taken, and the arriving Zhang Liao had to retreat upon hearing of the defeat. Lu Meng was promoted to Grand Administrator of Lujiang and the captured soldiers were put under his command. Lu Meng's merits amounted to number one, with Gan Ning taking the second spot. On his way to another area a rebellion rose in Luling, and no generals sent could put it down. Lu Meng was sent and upon arriving, he killed the instigator and quelled the uprising. Lu Meng was ordered to take three southern commanderies of Jing controlled by Liu Bei ― Changsha, Lingling, and Guiyang. Changsha and Lingling quickly submitted after receiving a letter, but Hao Pu, Grand Administrator of Lingling, did not. Guan Yu was battling Lu Su at Yiyang, and Sun Quan was away from the action west in Lukou. Lu Meng was ordered to abandon Lingling and to reinforce Lu Su. Instead of following orders, Lu Meng kept it a secret and summoned his commanders instructing them to attack Lingling before noon. Lu Meng sent a civilian friend of Hao Pu to convince him to surrender the city. As expected, Hao Pu came out and surrendered, and unbeknownst to him, four generals of Lu Meng took control of the city gates as Hao Pu left. He assigned Sun Jiao to manage Lingling while Lu Meng left for Yiyang. Liu Bei requested a peace treaty, and Sun Quan released Hao Pu to him, as well as Lingling. Lu Meng was given Xunyang and Yangxin as a fief. When Sun Quan marched onto Hefei in 215 AD, he was repelled by the defenders led by Zhang Liao, Li Dian, and Yue Jin. Sun Quan began a general retreat but was ambushed by Zhang Liao; Lu Meng and Ling Tong fiercely fought the enemy. In 217 AD, at the second defense of Ruxu, Lu Meng was made the chief controller for the army, and held the forts built earlier on. He was able to repel Cao Cao's vanguard before they could make a good attack with ten thousand crossbowmen. Cao Cao would retreat, and Lu Meng was rewarded with the titles Keeper of the Left Army, and General of Tiger Might. As Commander-in-Chief Lu Su died and his command was put under Lu Meng. Four fiefs were given to him, as well as the Grand Administrator of Hanchang position. Guan Yu, Liu Bei's administrator for Jing province, shared a border with him. Lu Meng commented that if more areas of Jing could be taken with Sun Jiao holding Nanjun in the north, Pan Zhang stationed at Baidi, Jiang Qin reinforcing riverside positions opposing the enemy, and Lu Meng himself heading north to take Xiangyang, then Guan Yu and Cao Cao would be of no consequence. Furthermore, he said that Guan Yu was haughty, and was not attacking Sun Quan's and because of Lu Meng and other officers still living and once they were gone, Guan Yu could easily take over Sun Quan's land by force. Sun Quan agreed and brought up the topic of taking Xu Province, which was north of Sun Quan's capital of Jianye and east of the Han capital of Xuchang. Lu Meng's reply was that though taking Xu province would be easy, keeping it would be difficult, and that taking Guan Yu's portion of Jing would be better. Lu Meng doubled the efforts in befriending Guan Yu. The Liu general attacked Fan, and Lu Meng noticed that he had left a large army behind worrying that Lu Meng wanted to take his positions. At this time Lu Meng had become ill. Accordingly and using it to his advantage, he had word passed around that he was severely ill, and Sun Quan, in cahoots with him, had an edict set that Lu Meng was to return to Jianye. Guan Yu then had the reserve troops recalled to fight on the frontlines. The bearded general's worries were lessened even more when Lu Meng's replacement, Lu Xun, began to send letters praising him. When Guan Yu conquered Fancheng, capturing Yu Jin and executing Pang De, and after Cao Cao expressed his fear that Xuchang could be taken by Guan Yu, Sima Yi was able to send an emissary to Sun Quan requesting assistance in the form of attacking Guan Yu's rear. The plan was accepted, and Sun Quan wanted his cousin Sun Jiao to share joint command with Lu Meng for the attack. Lu Meng argued against it, reminding Sun Quan of how Cheng Pu had temporarily resented Zhou Yu leading the Chibi defense as Cheng Pu himself was a more senior general. Lu Meng's words were appreciated and he alone was put in command. Lu Meng hid his best troops in minor naval crafts disguised as lowly merchants. With the illusion set they were able to take Guan Yu's guard boats, holding them captive so Guan Yu would not be notified. Lu Meng had Yu Fan convince Shi Ren to surrender Gong'an, and Shi Ren induced Mi Fang to surrender Nanjun. Lu Meng consoled the families of Guan Yu and his subordinates, and ordered that no soldier was to harass a peasant family. A soldier from Runan, where Lu Meng originated, took an item from a civilian family to protect and preserve his state-issued armor from the rain. Lu Meng, in tears, had him executed to follow the law, and there was no further issue. He had his colleagues care for the sick, poor and elderly in the city, giving them clothes, food, and other necessities wherever needed, and protected the belongings of Guan Yu. Messengers were sent from Guan Yu asking for news, and Lu Meng would treat them kindly and escort them around the city where families would ask for knowledge concerning the state of their friends and kinsmen in the Liu army. When the messengers came back to their camps, soldiers found out about the treatment of their families and how much better it was compared to treatment in the past. Sun Quan marched on Guan Yu and he fled to Maicheng. Guan Yu and his son were captured and beheaded. With Jing province pacified of any control from Liu Bei, Lu Meng was made Marquis of Chanling and Grand Administrator of Nanjun along with generous amounts of cash after personal declinations. Lu Meng became ill and was taken into the palace for treatment. Doctors from far and wide were recruited and a reward for one thousand catties of gold was set as a reward for whoever could cure Lu Meng's ailment. Sun Quan was deeply saddened by the illness and wanted to go and see Lu Meng during his acupuncture treatment, but because it might interrupt him, Sun Quan punched a hole through a wall to watch Lu Meng. If Lu Meng ate, Sun Quan would rejoice, but if he didn't, Sun Quan would not be able to rest at night. Lu Meng seemed to get healthier, and in honor Sun Quan held an amnesty for all. The illness got worse and after personally visiting him, Sun Quan ordered Taoist priests to pray for his life. Lu Meng had his gold and treasures organized and died at the age of 42. Under his order, the gold and treasures were given back to the state and Lu Meng wished to have his funeral modest and for expenses to be minimal, further depressing Sun Quan. Sun Quan later told Lu Xun that Lu Meng's strategic ability was second only to that of Zhou Yu, and in capturing Guan Yu, he was better than Lu Su. Tales During the siege at Nanjun, an officer defected to Zhou Yu along with his troops, and Zhou Yu wanted to add the troops to Lu Meng's command. Lu Meng, on the basis that it would be courteous to reward a defecting officer instead of taking away from him, persuaded Zhou Yu not to and to leave the defector with his original command. When three generals stationed close to Lu Meng died, leaving sons and younger brothers lacking the age to inherit heir troop, Sun Quan wanted to assign those troops to Lu Meng. However, Lu Meng wrote several times declining on the pretense that the three generals had given themselves to the fullest for the state and so the troops were not given to him, and Lu Meng assigned teachers to the future inheritors. In his youthful years under Sun Quan, because Lu Meng had not devoted himself to the texts of military strategy yet, the administrator of Jiangxia, Cai Yi, had filed complaints against him. He bore no grudge, and when the Grand Administrator of Yuzhang died, recommended Cai Yi to replace him. Sun Quan laughed and followed the proposal. On one occasion, Sun Quan recommended to the hesitant Lu Meng and Jiang Qin that with their new ranks, they should study military strategy. The former at first deemed himself to not have enough time to do so, but eventually took the decision to heart after hearing his lord's profound argument as recorded: From that point on, Lu Meng in particular grew very fond of his new hobby with each passing time, and his vigorous-studying lead to his knowledge quickly advancing to amount more than the experienced of scholars. Lu Su thought very little of Lu Meng when he succeeded Zhou Yu (who had passed due to illness), due to his reputation when Lu Meng was younger. Upon being urged by others to visit him out of politeness, he was astounded during a meeting with the hosting Lu Meng with the latter's foresight in having five different plans on how to deal with Guan Yu, whose territory was bordering theirs. The guest honored Lu Meng's mother and the two became good friends. Gan Ning was a new officer who often disobeyed orders. Sun Quan became angry at him, but Lu Meng would always present himself in Gan Ning's favor, saying that in the tough times tolerating Gan Ning would be the best, as Lu Meng would be the one to make use of Gan Ning's talents the most. He would eventually earn many achievements under Sun Quan. According to Gan Ning's scroll in the Records of Three Kingdoms, a kitchen boy of his committed an offense and fled to Lu Meng. Caring for the boy, Lu Meng did not show him to Gan Ning until later, and Gan Ning promised that he would not harm the boy. Gan Ning soon went back on his promise by tying him up to a tree to kill the offender himself with an arrow, then went back to his boat to rest. Lu Meng out of anger wanted to muster his troops to attack Gan Ning on his boat, but the mother of the filial Lu Meng stopped him with a few words, noting that even if his lord Sun Quan were to let slide the matter of fellow soldiers attacking each other, it was still unprofessional of Lu Meng to hold such a grudge. Gan Ning and Lu Meng later on went to see the latter's mother and then feasted. It should be noted that despite what the Koei portrayals of both Lu Meng and Gan Ning imply via the "old man" nicknaming, the former was three years younger than the latter. Romance of the Three Kingdoms In the historical novel, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, his plan to feign sickness to fool Guan Yu into feeling secure about his rear force during the siege of Fancheng is given to Lu Xun, with Lu Meng feigning sickness because he was unsure in how to defeat him. After Guan Yu's death, his spirit possessed Lu Meng and made blood spill out of his orifices, killing him. Gallery __NOWYSIWYG__ Category:Wu Characters Category:Warriors Orochi Characters Category:Kessen Characters